Primrose Hospice. Approved by: Candy Cooley, Chairman Date of approval February 2016 Originator(s): Libby Mytton, Director of Care. 1.

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1 Approved by: Candy Cooley, Chairman Date of approval February 2016 Originator(s): Libby Mytton, Director of Care 1. Introduction Primrose Hospice supports the right of all children to live free from abuse in accordance with the principles of respect, dignity, autonomy, privacy and equity. This policy and procedure sets out the framework within which all staff at Primrose Hospice and other responsible agencies work for the protection of vulnerable adults. The Safeguarding Children s Policy at Primrose Hospice is based on the Worcestershire Safeguarding Children s policy and procedures, which should be read in conjunction with this document. 2. Purpose of Policy This policy and procedure ensures that staff and volunteers at Primrose Hospice are alert to indications of abuse in children and able to take appropriate action to safeguard them from further abuse. 3. Roles and Responsibilities The Chief Executive Officer is responsible for determining the governance arrangements of the Hospice, including effective risk management processes. They are responsible for ensuring that the necessary clinical policies, procedures and guidelines are in place to safeguard patients and reduce risk. In addition they will require assurance that clinical policies, procedures and guidelines are being implemented and monitored for effectiveness and compliance. Director of Care The Director of Care has overall responsibility for patient safety and ensuring that there are effective risk management processes within the Hospice that meet all statutory requirements and adhere to guidance issued by the Department of Health. Page 1 of 6 Revision due by: 02/19

2 Safeguarding Lead for Adults and Children The Family Support Team Leader is the lead for all safeguarding concerns at Primrose Hospice. Line Managers Line managers are responsible for ensuring that: This policy is made available to all staff within their department The staff they are responsible for implement and comply with the policy That staff are updated with regards to any change in the policy All Staff and Volunteers All staff and volunteers will complete the mandatory training which provides information with regard to this policy and procedure. Definition, categories and examples of abuse For definitions, categories and examples of abuse please refer to the Worcestershire Safeguarding Children s website. 4. Method All staff and volunteers have a duty to report any allegation or suspicions of abuse, current or historical, of a vulnerable child to their Line Manager. This may include concerns regarding care within the Hospice setting, in the patient s home or other institutions that have become apparent during the course of assessment or during conversations with outside contacts such as family or the primary health care team. Where there is a suspicion of abuse occurring within the Hospice, and where normal reporting lines cannot be followed, staff or volunteers should refer to the Raising Concerns about Poor Practice Policy (Whistle Blowing). Where abuse, current or historical, of a child has been alleged or is suspected, Social Care (Safeguarding) must be notified (see website via above link). Staff and volunteers should discuss in the first instance any areas of concern about a patient with their Line Manager. The Line Manager will then discuss with the Safeguarding Lead who will take appropriate, if necessary, action. If the Line Manager or Safeguarding Lead is unavailable, staff/volunteers should discuss their concerns with any of the Hospice Directors: Chief Executive Officer, Finance Director or Director of Care. Page 2 of 6 Revision due by: 02/19

3 If there is no senior member of staff available, staff or volunteers are able to contact the Social Care Hub as any member of the general public on Precise written records will be kept on the Electronic Healthcare Record (SystmOne) of all discussions and decisions and shared with Line Management. SystmOne is a secure hosted record system, and all data is held in a secure data centre accredited by the Health and Social Care Information Centre (HSCIC). No paper records relating to the safeguarding of children are held at Primrose Hospice. Where an allegation of abuse has been made against a member of the professional team at Primrose Hospice, it may be necessary to report the incident to the governing body e.g. Nursing and Midwifery Council, Health and Care Professional Council, or other relevant professional body. 5. Safeguarding Awareness Information will be displayed to raise awareness amongst service users and the general public of safeguarding as an issue and to inform people of what they should do if concerned about possible abuse or neglect of a vulnerable adult, whether that concern relates to the organisation or another setting. 6. Staff Training All staff will develop skills in recognising signs of various forms of abuse. All staff undertake a written training module in Safeguarding Children every 3 years. All staff undertake training in line with the Government s PREVENT agenda. 7. Review This policy will be reviewed every 3 years, or sooner if legislation requires. 8. Policy Area Risk Management. Page 3 of 6 Revision due by: 02/19

4 Appendix 1 Further useful information: Risk Factors: Remember this is not a definitive list. Please be aware that these indicators do not suggest that a child may be at risk of harm or abuse, they are only listed as possible indicators. Certain characteristics have been found to be associated with all forms of harm: A history of abuse in the childhood of one or both parents. Violent behaviour of the parents towards each other, or other signs of stress in the adult relationship. Immature parents often feeling socially isolated. Parents who abuse drugs or alcohol. Parents who have significant mental health problems. Children born prematurely or with handicaps or low birth weight. Unwanted pregnancies or illegitimate children. A recent pregnancy. Parents who have previously abused a child or where there has been suspicion of previous abuse. Situations of social stress such as poor housing, and financial difficulty. Situations where there appears to be a lack of bonding between the parent and child often associated with separation for some period shortly after the birth of the child. These characteristics also apply to disabled children. Indications of Harm The abuse, or possible abuse, of a child may come to your attention in a number of different ways. 1. Information given by child 2. The child s behaviour 3. An injury which arouses suspicion 4. Long term concerns for the welfare of a child 5. Contact with somebody who poses a risk to children 6. Concerns regarding an unborn child 7. Substance abuse Page 4 of 6 Revision due by: 02/19

5 Good Practice Pointers when a child makes a direct disclosure of abuse (extract from the Memorandum of Good Practice HMSO 1991) Listen to the child rather than directly question him or her. Never stop a child who is freely recalling significant events. Make a note of the discussion, taking care to record the timing, setting and people present, in addition to what was said. Record all subsequent events up to the time of the substantive interview; wherever possible try to record verbatim what the child said. Never promise the child that what they have told you can be kept secret. Explain that you have a responsibility to report the child s story to someone else. Where there are child welfare concerns there ought always to be the opportunity to discuss these with the designated officer, a senior colleague, manager or other appropriate professional before taking action. Since this is not always possible it is required that you will: Never delay emergency action to protect a child Always record in writing concerns about a child s welfare, whether or not action is taken Always record in writing discussions about a child s welfare Always reach clear and explicit recorded agreement about who will be taking what action, or that no action will be taken If somebody believes that a child may be suffering, or may be at risk of suffering significant harm, then he/she should always refer his or her concerns to the local authority social services department, the police or the NSPCC. In general it is expected that professionals should seek to discuss any concerns with the family and where possible seek their agreement to making a referral but this should only be done where it will not place a child at increased risk of harm. When making a referral it is the responsibility of the social services department to clarify the nature of the concerns; how and why they have arisen; and what appears to be the needs of the child and the family. However, the referrer should always be prepared to identify clearly any concerns about abuse or neglect; their foundation, and whether the child/ren may need urgent action to make them safe from harm. Page 5 of 6 Revision due by: 02/19

6 Local Child Protection Services Any child at IMMEDIATE RISK contact your local Police department or ring 999. For general information or advice please contact; Worcestershire Social Care Access centre or for further information and guidance, access Worcestershire Safeguarding Children s website. NSPCC (24 hour) Childline Page 6 of 6 Revision due by: 02/19